


Light Reading

by Sasa_Q



Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Cute Qcard proposal, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:40:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25929769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sasa_Q/pseuds/Sasa_Q
Summary: Q writes a book about Picard to surprise him... but that's not the only surprise in store.
Relationships: Jean-Luc Picard/Q
Comments: 4
Kudos: 26
Collections: Star Trek Bingo Summer 2020





	Light Reading

Q had surprised Picard many times. There had been that incident where Q showed up on the Enterprise bridge naked and powerless. That time when Picard's artificial heart had failed him and he awoke in a place made of white light to Q's god-like image telling him he was dead. And then there was the time when Q first admitted that he was in love with Picard. And Picard supposed he was surprised when Q kissed him for the first time. But after all that, what other surprises could Q pull on him?

So when Q told Picard that he had a big surprise for him, he was, naturally, a bit doubtful that it was actually going to surprise him.

Q stood behind him and covered his eyes with his hands. His hands were pleasantly warm against Picard's face. "No peeking, Jean-Luc," he said.

"I promise I won't peek," said Picard, smiling. "What is it that you don't want me to see?"

"That would ruin the surprise!" said Q. "I'm going to take my hands off your eyes. Don't peek."

"Again, I won't peek," said Picard. Q took his hands off Picard's eyes and Picard heard him snap his fingers. "What could be so important that-"

"Now you can open your eyes!" said Q.

Picard opened his eyes. There, on his bed, lay a large hardback book, in brand-new quality. Its cover was an illustration of the Milky Way galaxy. The title read "Jean-Luc Picard".

"What is this?" Picard asked.

"Just read it!" said Q, who was so excited he couldn't help but grin.

Picard had to admit, it made him happy that Q was so excited. He opened the book to its first page. "Jean-Luc Picard, by Q," he read. "Q, you wrote this?"

"The whole book!" said Q.

"It must be five hundred pages long!" Picard said.

"Six hundred and two," said Q proudly. "Read it!"

"Jean-Luc Picard," Picard read. "Where do I even start? He's the best, smartest, most beautiful man in the galaxy. He's the best captain Starfleet has ever had. He's the best friend anyone could ask for. And he's the best partner in the entire universe." Picard looked up. "Q, this whole book is about me?"

"Yes!" said Q. "Chapter One is about how much I love your eyes."

"I hope you're not going through a list of body parts," said Picard. "Or this book might end up very risque."

"Don't worry, there's more than just that," said Q. "There's a chapter of things that remind me of you. Chapter Eight is about how much I love your laugh. There's an anecdote about that time we went to Risa and you dropped your book in the pool and I used my powers to get it out of the pool and that one tourist said I was a god and tried to worship me and you said-"

"-he's mine to worship, thank you very much," recalled Picard with a grin spreading across his face. They had laughed about that incident for days.

"There's a chapter about the funny things you say in French in your sleep," said Q.

"I talk in my sleep?" Picard exclaimed.

"Every night," said Q. "There's a chapter about how good you look in your dress uniform. There's a section of good things other people have said about you."

"You interviewed people?" Picard asked.

"Sort of," said Q. "I may have gotten through to Starfleet a few times pretending to be an admiral. And I visited Starfleet Academy and saw that professor you like so much. Also, I wrote down the nice things that your crew have said about you when you aren't listening. And of course, there are three chapters just describing the feelings you make me feel. One of those chapters is a little explicit, so watch out for that."

Picard couldn't help but smile. "Q, I don't know what to say," he said.

"I know how much you love reading, so I decided to write a book about how much I love you," said Q.

"It's not even my birthday," said Picard.

"Birthdays aren't the only anniversaries," said Q enigmatically. "You should turn to page 588 and start reading from the top."

Picard licked the tip of his finger and used it to open the book to the correct page. He cleared his throat. "Jean-Luc Picard is, in my not-so-humble, the best mortal to ever exist," Picard read aloud. "He has contributed so much good to the universe. He is the most beautiful sentient being I have ever seen. He is so passionate about the things and the people he cares about, and I am lucky to count myself as one of those people. He makes me feel things that I never thought possible. I love every single bit of him and I'll never stop loving him no matter what happens. That's why I wanted to ask him something today. Jean-Luc, this is for you. You know I'm not the biggest fan of human rituals, but I'm willing to make concessions for you. So I want you to do something for me. Turn around." Picard stopped reading. "Turn around?"

"Just turn around, Jean-Luc," said Q, who was somewhere behind him.

Picard turned around and his if his heart wasn't artificial, it would have stopped beating out of shock. Q was on one knee on the floor of Picard's quarters, holding up a ring.

"Jean-Luc," he said, and his voice wavered but his eye contact never did, "I know you're a mortal, so you have a limited concept of 'forever'. But I... I want to spend forever with you. Will you... will you marry me?"

Picard was smiling so hard it hurt. "Of course I'll marry you, Q," he said. "Now stand up so I can kiss you." Q slipped the ring onto Picard's finger. His hands were shaking. He rose to his feet and Picard immediately began to kiss him. As Q kissed back, he drew Picard into a tight embrace, their bodies pressed together.

"You really meant it?" Q said when they broke apart.

"I wouldn't lie to you, Q!" said Picard. Then he started laughing.

"What is it?" Q asked.

"I never thought that I would be getting married to Grand Inquisitor Q who put me on trial for all the crimes of humanity," said Picard.

"I never thought I would be getting married to that irritating mortal who I was putting on trial," said Q with a smile. "But here we are."

"Here we are," Picard repeated. He loved Q so, so much in that moment, and it was so much that it wholly consumed him to the point where all he could see, all he ever wanted to see, was Q.

"I hope you like the book," said Q, noticing the expression on Picard's face soften. "It took me a while to write. It turns out that I have a lot of thoughts but they aren't very good at being transferred to paper."

"I love it," said Picard, "and I love you."

Q squeezed his hand. "How do you think the crew will react?" he asked.

"Worf will be furious," said Picard with a smile. "Beverly will insist that she plan the ceremony. Data will no doubt create an entire program for the wedding. How will the Q Continuum react?"

"Like they usually do," said Q. "With disapproval. But it's not like they can do anything about it." He leaned in and kissed Picard gently, softly. "Don't worry about the Q Continuum," he said when the kiss was done. "I just want to think about us."

"That sounds fine to me," said Picard. He picked up the book Q had written off his bed. "It appears as if I have some reading to do."

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going to be honest, this is my least favorite fic in the bingo that I've done. What did you think of it?


End file.
